ILM's Top 77 Albums of 2013

not everyone follows these threads real-time, guys

Maybe the Rhye fans are ashamed?

It's possible, so many feelings.

cool Albums

Also it's only 9 a.m. on the west coast.
Also who cares.

Im listening to the Young Galaxy album now. Its ace. Lovely production.

I'm listening to it too. It really reminds me of that last Chairlift album in places.

ILM and occasionally the Wire is the only place I ever see mention of DJ Sprinkles/Thaemlitz.

if you read fact or RA you'd find her there, too. also about a million music blogs.

People have strange hang-ups about Arctic Monkeys based on nothing as far as I can tell other than made-up presumptions about their character. I admit I didn't like them when the first album came out simply because they did seem douchy to me. But then they came out with several consistently good albums after that and I got over it.

http://i.imgur.com/dB6YraK.jpg

54 NEKO CASE The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You (337 points, 11 votes)

Spotify

Beautiful album, so many highlights: ragtime, city swans, man, night still comes, nearly midnight.

People have strange hang-ups about Arctic Monkeys based on nothing as far as I can tell other than made-up presumptions about their character. I admit I didn't like them when the first album came out simply because they did seem douchy to me. But then they came out with several consistently good albums after that and I got over it.

― Fastnbulbous

I don't have any hang ups about their character. I've heard a lot of songs by them and I haven't liked a single one of them. Simple as that.

Woo! First of mine to place (I had it at #3)!

not bad, but not a patch on her last few records imo

I tried so damn hard to love this album because she's great. I found it tuneless.

one definite highlight is adultnapper ft. big bully - low point on high ground (dj sprinkles rock bottom mix) though - those piano chords that keep disrupting it all are so amazingly sinister

Enjoying this right now, it's like a house film soundtrack.

More put off by Arctic Monkeys fans tbh, heard too many conversations last year about how they took Hold On We're Going Home and turned it into 'real music'.

xpost yeah ive tried to like the arctic monkeys. loads of my friends love them and rave about them so it isnt a kneejerk hatred. granted, they have the odd clever and well crafted lyric but ive never dug anything except "cornerstone"

i haven't really heard anything by neko case since blacklisted. not sure why as i really liked that. is this as good?

For whatever reason, I skipped Neko Case's last 2 albums, but decided to give this one a shot. It took a couple of listens but I really love it now.

First of my albums to place.

Not as good as blacklisted, but very few things are.

I try every new Neko album that comes along, and this one seemed better than previous recent ones on first blush. Still, I rarely return to her solo material.

Fox Confessor is still my favorite. Didn't really like Middle Cyclone, thought it was a bit bland. This new one is a big improvement and possibly her most consistent overall.

this Donato Dozzy is quite beautiful. I must have been led astray by the same mixed reviews that lex saw. I haven't finished it, but so far it's superior to VFTL

Huh I guess I slept on that Neko record. Anyway just popped in to say that Donato Dozzy cover art makes me irrationally angry.

Why?

This was actually my favorite Neko since Blacklisted. I know nobody agrees, but my favorite Neko is still Furnace Room Lullaby

last 2 neko cases were better imo but this one is still solid

I played the Neko on the radio a lot (it was on rotation) but would probably never listen to it on my own initiative

http://i.imgur.com/uqGIlk0.png

53 CARCASS Surgical Steel (344 points, 9 votes, 3 first place votes)

Spotify

Phew, feel less guilty about not voting now.

Lex's no1 obv.

3 #1s! We're not going to see that again until, uh, tomorrow.

Anything here that would be accessible to a non-fan of metal?

voted for the Donato Dozzy and the Ka albums. They serve a similar purpose for me, in that they are both very much mood pieces. I think Ka's lyrics are confounding, being so dense that the effort it takes to fully appreciate them carries me out of the mood of the music, which is where I'd rather be

sean: no.

Thanks people who voted for the Dozzy album, really enjoyed it.

I tried so damn hard to love this album because she's great. I found it tuneless.

― Bryan Fairy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, January 28, 2014 12:12 PM (25 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

so like all of her albums since blacklisted. i got to the ridiculous honolulu one this time before i gave up.

It's quite trad rocky in a lot of its arrangements, some very melodic lead parts. Try 'Cadaver Conveyor Pouch System', 'Noncompliance to astm f899-12 standard' or "The Granulating Dark Satanic Mills'. The vocals may prove a stumbling block.

xposts

for anyone who wants Carcass at their "most" "pop" I recommend "The Granulating Dark Satanic Mills."

(xp)

It seems to be a photo of garbage which fits in with the whole vaporwave thing but it seems lazy and not very compelling, except it compels me to hate it. Maybe because it's so fugly. And maybe somebody thought to arrange that photo, in which case, IDK if that's worse or not... Anyway it's a pretty good ambient record but I voted for Tim Hecker instead. xpost

Donato Dozzy is the first thing on here I straight-up hadn't even heard of that seems interesting.

i'm not super big on 'middle cyclone' these days and this one isn't hitting me yet (might need to spend more time with both), but i think 'the tigers have spoken' and 'fox confessor' are both incredible.

thanks al for turning me on to that Donato Dozzy album, think you mentioned it on ILV

http://i.imgur.com/gM6NP1f.jpg?1

52 SAVAGES Silence Yourself (346 points, 15 votes, 1 first place vote)

Spotify

my favorites off the new Neko Case are "Night Still Comes" and "Bracing for Sunday"

xxpost

I shd have thrown this on the bottom of my ballot tbh, it was a very enjoyable listen even if it didn't melt my mind (like Gorguts)

uhhh Carcass obv

i voted for 'night still comes' in the tracks poll, it's great